Scotland has confirmed changes to how certain disability and carer benefits can continue to be paid to people living in an EEA state or Switzerland. From 1 April 2026, long‑standing awards of the DLA care component, PIP daily living component and Carer’s Allowance may be maintained for those covered by EU social security coordination on 31 December 2020, provided strict conditions are met.
The Statutory Instrument amends the Invalid Care Allowance Regulations 1976, the Disability Living Allowance Regulations 1991 and the Personal Independence Payment Regulations 2013 as they apply in Scotland. In each case, entitlement can continue where a “relevant EU Regulation” applies to the person now, or applied on 31 December 2020 and the person has been in continuous receipt since that date. The continuation route is not available if the person has been habitually resident in the United Kingdom at any point after 31 December 2020. The approach mirrors changes already implemented for England and Wales and for Northern Ireland.
In practical terms, this protects a closed group. It is aimed at claimants who were within scope of EU coordination rules at the end of the transition period and have remained abroad with an uninterrupted award. Individuals who started a claim after 31 December 2020, or whose award has not run continuously from that date, do not gain a new route to payment under these amendments. This tracks the position taken in the equivalent GB and Northern Ireland instruments.
The Regulations do not create grounds for new claims. They provide a legal basis to keep paying existing awards where the coordination criteria are met, echoing the explanation published alongside the parallel GB instrument. For advisers, the key checks will be whether EU coordination applied on 31 December 2020, whether the award has been continuous on and from that date, and whether the person has avoided habitual residence in the UK thereafter.
Only specific elements are covered. For disability benefits, the continuation route applies to the DLA care component and the PIP daily living component. Mobility components are not included in these amendments. Carer’s Allowance is included where the underlying entitlement has been paid without interruption from 31 December 2020. The scope and wording align with the GB and Northern Ireland measures brought into force in December 2025.
The concept of a “relevant EU Regulation” reflects the UK’s post‑Brexit coordination framework, under which EU social security rules continue to apply for certain people covered by the Withdrawal Agreement, the EEA EFTA Separation Agreement or the Swiss Citizens’ Rights Agreement. Scotland’s devolved disability assistance schemes separately reference these coordination gateways and, in some cases, a ‘genuine and sufficient link’ test; those arrangements remain distinct and are unaffected by this SSI.
For caseworkers and claimants, the evidential focus is continuity. Payment records should demonstrate an unbroken award from 31 December 2020 onward. Any period of habitual residence in the UK after that date would disqualify use of the continuation route based on past application of EU rules, though individuals may still qualify where EU coordination currently applies under the relevant agreements. The amendments standardise this position across the UK’s jurisdictions, with Scotland commencing on 1 April 2026.
Contextually, Scotland’s move follows the Department for Work and Pensions instrument for England and Wales and a matching Northern Ireland regulation, both of which took effect on 10 December 2025. The Scottish commencement date provides a clear lead‑in for administrators and advisers to verify continuous entitlement and coordination coverage in affected cases.